You don't just retain talent—you build loyalty

Francisco de Vitoria University held the first webinar of the 3rd International Conference on Mentoring in the Business World, a session focused on a key issue for today’s organizations: why traditional talent retention strategies are failing and what companies that do succeed in building commitment and retaining their employees are doing differently.

Under the title “Talent isn’t retained: it’s either nurtured or lost”, the event featured María Sánchez Arjona, director of Graduate and Executive Education at the UFV School of Law, Business, and Government, and Antonio Sastre, a consultant at Crescente, coordinator of Integral Formation at Regnum Christi Spain, and co-director of the Master’s in Educational Accompaniment.

This session is part of a series of webinars leading up to the 3rd International Congress on Coaching in the business sector, which will be held on November 12 and 13, 2026 at the UFV campus. This congress was created with the goal of rethinking business from a deeply human perspective, placing the individual at the center of strategy, organizational culture, and transformation processes.

Captura de pantalla 2026-05-18 103756 The UFV kicks off the webinar series for the 3rd International Congress on Mentoring in the Business Sector with a discussion on talent retention Study at the Universidad Privada Madrid

María Sánchez Arjona, Director of Graduate and Executive Education at the UFV School of Law, Business, and Government, and Antonio Sastre, Co-Director of the UFV Master’s Program in Educational Support

María Sánchez Arjona: “Change starts with oneself and then spreads to the organizational environment”

During the opening of the webinar, María Sánchez Arjona explained that the goal of the session was to initiate “a discussion, a dialogue about an issue that greatly concerns organizations,” namely “the ongoing loss of talent.”

The director of Graduate and Executive Education at the School of Law, Business, and Government at UFV also emphasized the practical and experiential focus of the event: “I would love—and so would Antonio—for this webinar to be very practical, so that you can apply what you learn directly to your own situations.” In this regard, she invited participants not to adopt a “spectator mindset,” but rather to ask themselves how the topics covered during the session speak to them personally.

“Change begins with oneself and then spreads to the organizational environment,” said Sánchez Arjona, emphasizing that the transformation of corporate cultures cannot be separated from the personal transformation of those who are part of them.

The session began with some background information on engagement, disengagement, and dissatisfaction in organizations, in order to raise a fundamental question: what is going wrong in the way we understand, support, and connect with people within companies?

Antonio Sastre: “There is no way to understand and conduct business that does not involve a certain view of humanity”

From an anthropological perspective, Antonio Sastre argued that every organization is built, explicitly or implicitly, on a particular conception of the human person. “There is no way to understand and conduct business that does not involve a particular view of humanity,” he noted.

For Sastre, the key issue is not just what talent policies a company implements, but the perspective from which it views the people who work there. “Anthropology goes hand in hand with them,” he explained, referring to executives, “because in their decisions and those of their colleagues, in the way they interact with one another, and even in the way the organization is structured and its processes are designed, there is an implicit anthropology—that is, a way of understanding people.”

In this regard, he argued that mentoring in the workplace requires a return to a deeper appreciation of the dignity and value of each person. “A human being is a person, which means they have absolute value—not just immense value, but, to take it even further, infinite value,” he stated. He added: “In all activities involving human beings, where are you going to place the person? Well, the only place they belong, if they have that infinite value, is at the center.”

Meaning and connection: the keys to retaining talent

One of the central themes of the webinar was the need to move away from a purely utilitarian view of work toward a deeper understanding of its meaning, its contribution, and human relationships in professional life.

Sastre explained that many motivation strategies remain on the surface level of a person’s being—linked to salary, external recognition, or career advancement—without reaching the deepest core of commitment. “People, you see, want this: to live a life and do a job that has purpose and meaning,” he said.

He also emphasized that the bond within organizations cannot be reduced to mere “good vibes” or occasional social activities. “It’s not that; it’s much deeper,” he said. “We’re trying to touch people’s hearts. And so we’re talking about something different—the longing for connection.”

In this vein, Sánchez Arjona invited attendees to reflect on their own career paths and identify those moments when they had found true meaning in their work. “Try this exercise on a personal level: think about the professional situations that have really inspired me, and how there may have been moments with my team when that feeling emerged,” he noted.

From Data to Collaboration: A New Way to Understand Relationships in the Workplace

Another concept discussed during the session was that of “encounter,” understood as an authentic relationship that allows people to grow together. Sastre explained that, from a personalist perspective, an encounter is not the same as a cordial or functional relationship, but rather a deeper form of connection.

“Personalist philosophers speak of ‘encounter,’” he explained. “This refers to a particular kind of very deep, very authentic relationship that touches the innermost core of a person; these are heart-to-heart relationships.”

According to the speaker, this type of relationship has a direct impact on team dynamics and organizational quality. “The true strength of a team lies in connection; let me be clear, it’s not just about having a good time. When there is genuine connection within a team, that team is truly a high-performing one,” he stated.

At this point, the webinar highlighted the need to shift from an approach focused exclusively on data, objectives, and metrics to one that is capable of listening to the individual. “How different it is to listen to the individual rather than simply gathering the information that the other person provides,” Sastre noted.

"It's all about the person"

Toward the end of the meeting, María Sánchez Arjona emphasized that organizational transformation begins with each person’s ability to **change the way they see things** and interact with others. “You suddenly realize that you’re in a state of conflict and can find the **resourcefulness** within yourself to shift into a state of harmony,” she said.

“In our model of support, the individual is the key,” concluded Sánchez Arjona. “That’s how we began the webinar, and it is certainly our approach at the conference and in our model.”

The webinar was the first in a series of sessions related to the themes of the 3rd International Congress on Mentoring in the Business World, which will address issues such as the meaning of work, artificial intelligence and automation, corporate governance and leadership, sustainability, and workplace well-being, current mentoring and coaching practices, and the role of universities and business schools in humanizing companies.

Through this series, UFV continues to foster opportunities for reflection and dialogue on the role of coaching as a means of transforming organizational culture and helping to create more humane, meaningful, and sustainable work environments.

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The UFV kicks off the webinar series for the 3rd International Congress on Mentoring in the Business Sector with a discussion on talent retention

You don't just retain talent—you build loyalty

María Sánchez Arjona: “Change starts with oneself and then spreads to the organizational environment”

Antonio Sastre: “There is no way to understand and conduct business that does not involve a certain view of humanity”

Meaning and connection: the keys to retaining talent

From Data to Collaboration: A New Way to Understand Relationships in the Workplace

"It's all about the person"

You may be interested

You don't just retain talent—you build loyalty

María Sánchez Arjona: “Change starts with oneself and then spreads to the organizational environment”

Antonio Sastre: “There is no way to understand and conduct business that does not involve a certain view of humanity”

Meaning and connection: the keys to retaining talent

From Data to Collaboration: A New Way to Understand Relationships in the Workplace

"It's all about the person"

You may be interested